The present invention is directed to article-handling systems and methods and, in particular, to such systems and methods utilizing a crossbelt sorter and method of sorting articles.
Article sortation is useful in many industries, including parcel and postal handling, article warehousing, and product distribution to name but a few. A crossbelt sorter utilizes a short section of conveyor belt that is mounted along with a drive motor to a carriage that is coupled with other carriages to travel along a track. The conveyor belt is oriented to convey articles in a direction that is perpendicular to the motion of travel of the carriages, which leads to the designation of a crossbelt sorter. Articles can be positioned on the conveyor belt or discharged from the conveyor belt while the carriages continue in motion by operating the belt in one of opposite directions. Articles can be positioned on the conveyor belts in conjunction with a powered induct to load articles. Articles can be discharged from the conveyor belts to one of a plurality of discharge locations to sort the articles. The discharge locations can include chutes, gravity conveyors, powered conveyors, or the like.